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| Book cover via Amazon.com |
I'd also like to give a big thank you to Booktasters for this again. No, they do not pay me, but they do give me an opportunity to read things that my budget usually could not afford, and then review them. I've learned a lot about writing, about appreciation of the craft of writing, and mostly about how people like books.
So onto this review!
Opinion
“Lost Kings” is a solid short story clocking in at 27 pages. It has a complete beginning, middle, and end, and it has an interesting finish. The premise, two men who are on their way to go to formal college, stop their lives and decide to really live it doing things that can only be done when one goes off the grid. They do all of this fun stuff in Europe, and they discover the meaning of friendship, aggravation, frustration, and there are some bits in there about food. I also feel terrible for the chocolate thing that seems to have no love. Of all the characters in this book, that one chocolate thing is so sad, and I hope it finds its way into another story someday to be loved and appreciated.
All of that said, the real question is, “Mrs. Y. Did you like this story?”
Did I like it? I’m not sure that I’d call it deep like, but I thought it was okay. To elaborate though, It was just okay, and I am by no means in love with it. I do see myself reading this like when I'm in a waiting room, or trying to do something but want to read between tasks.
One of the reasons I wasn't a huge fan, has to do with the prose and word choice. I found the poetic prose of the story was not matching the tone of the story, so that took me out of it a couple of times. It’s written in the style of a fantasy or possibly even a Charlotte Bronte novel, very formal, and so descriptive and massive. Yet the story itself is gritty and dirty and it feels weird with the words. So I guess take the grittiness and genuine feelings from “Kitchen Confidential” By Anthony Bourdain, mix it with the descriptiveness of Bronte, shorten it a bit, add some interesting takes on sewing one's oats, and you got “Lost Kings.”
I think that was the point though, that this is a story of enlightenment and grandiose things, among a backdrop of grittiness and mutual discovery among two school chums who are spending their time discovering Europe and themselves. That said, I didn’t really enjoy that contrast of beautiful words mixed with the F-Bombs and describing the things that the book described. It’s not that it’s bad either folks, it’s that it’s just not for me. I probably am going to read “Lost Kings” again because, it’s just about perfect for errand running and, it is thought-provoking, even if it isn’t my favorite short story.
I've read better short stories, and I have read much worse. This is about the middle of the pack. You guys know I adore short stories, and from my previous reviews, I’ve mentioned that they are in my opinion the most challenging and difficult of story types to write. So I do want to be sure that you all know I read this three times, just to be sure my feelings on it were genuine to me all three times and that this was indeed how I am taking this story. Every time I left it feeling the same, it was okay, but it wasn’t one of the great ones to me personally.
That aside, Paul did an excellent job making me think about it so cerebrally. Despite it not being my cup of tea, I can honestly say that this book is indeed worth a read just so you know how you personally feel about it.
Right now according to Amazon, it's $.99, and that's a good deal.
Score
I'm giving Lost Kings a 79/100 for a short story review. Again, not great, not bad, just about the higher end of the middle of the pack.
That said tell me what you think in the comments? Did you like the story? Did you not like the story? Do you think I am too harsh about the verbiage and prose? I am most certainly interested in your opinion too!
